Dance / “Unravel”, Erindale Theatre, season closed. Reviewed by SAMARA PURNELL.

“WHAT light through yonder window breaks?” Juliet unravels from red material, on to the stage, lit from the wings. A premonition? A dream? An omen? An ending?

The Training Ground presents “Unravel”, the story of Romeo and Juliet, with its own variations on the narrative.

This vision in red, Ali Mayes’ Juliet, was all-round stunning. A slightly nervous start was quickly forgotten and Mayes’ flexibility, strength and stamina were impressive. The leg-lines she created and controlled were beautiful and on top of that, Mayes is captivating to look at, commanding attention almost to the detriment of anything else happening on stage.

Romeo, danced by Joshua Walsh, is the only male in the auditioned, pre-professional cast and he provided solid partnering and confident dancing. He emotes well and has a pleasant stage demeanour. He doesn’t get a lot of solo dance time in this to express strong masculinity or present his character’s personality through wardrobe and a signature style.

The all-female, sparring families of Romeo and Juliet, the Montagues and Capulets, are represented very much in the manner of the “Sharks” and “Jets” in “West Side Story”, with the gangs continually clashing physically.

“Unravel” incorporated animated snippets of Shakespeare’s text and segments of film, shot around Civic and Girls’ Grammar to show that Juliet, her mother and her posse are not exactly “squeaky clean” – lurking around back allies making dodgy deals. The high-flying world of the Montague Corporation, run by Romeo’s mum, had the ensemble in power-suits, kowtowing to their authoritarian leader.

This was a fun and multi-faceted way to present the backstories of characters and progress the narrative but at times it went over-the-top with melodrama.

The inclusion of the “Material Girl” number, to highlight Romeo and his family making and spending money, broke the characterisation of the Montagues, detracting from their seriousness and appearing frivolously out of place.

Lady Montague (Mrs Montague) was performed by Imogen Addison who was perfectly cast. She had a strong stage presence both theatrically and in dance. Under her rigid rules, matriarchal mayhem ensues with the arranged nuptials of Romeo to Paris (in this production the A-grade, all-rounder Grammar girl and Romeo’s suitor, not the male Count in love with Juliet, as traditionally depicted).

A ’60s themed, highly-stylised masquerade ball is crashed by a beguiling Juliet. Her pas de deux with Romeo after the party had beautiful lines and lifts, with a split-lift lasting deliciously longer than expected.

Engrossed in the mortuary scene, the suspense was palpable. Would one or both or perhaps neither love-struck teens die, or stay “dead”?

A pleasing, recognisable and striking soundtrack was created for the production using dramatic pieces – “Carmina Burana” for example and appealing versions of songs from Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 film. Abrupt endings to the film snippets and music were jarring and other editing, such as cross-fades may have been preferable.

The lighting is pretty when it needs to be, dramatic when it should be and works with the costumes, some of which were black, scalloped leotards, with just the right amount of sparkle. There is also a sneaky costume reveal at one point. The pretty costumes and ensemble line formations in the final scenes paid homage to traditional ballet.

The choreography consisted largely of staccato movements and timing, with plenty of acrobatic floorwork. The dance vocabulary in this particular production does not include a lot of fluid movement or softness and the attention to detail and timing create a striking performance. The appeal and appearance of a professional production is notable.

Founders of The Training Ground, Bonnie Neate and Suzy Piani, have the goals of creating a professional environment from training and rehearsal, technique and fitness demands, to performance.

The attention to every detail in “Unravel” is clearly evident: The ensemble’s synchronicity is striking, the execution exact and the intense rehearsal evident.

“Unravel” is an engaging and aesthetically attractive production and a commendable effort from both producers and cast. Some dancers will move on to begin professional dance careers, as they did last year. And that is the intention of this new dance school, with the second production now under its belt. So, a fleeting glimpse of this group of hard-working, dedicated dancers is likely all that will be seen. Parting is such sweet sorrow.